Yellow weather warnings for thunderstorms are in force – covering swathes of the north of England, Northern Ireland and Scotland on Sunday – as the summer washout continues.
The warnings mean there is a risk of flooding to homes and businesses as well as the risk of lightning strike damage to properties.
The Met Office also said standing water on the roads and localised flooding could make driving treacherous, with a risk of disruption to public transport.
The warning for Scotland is in place until 11.59pm on Sunday, while a separate warning for northern England, part of north Wales and Northern Ireland expires at 9pm.
It follows a wet Saturday for many places, with parts of London and Glasgow hit with flash floods following frequent heavy rain showers.
A Met Office spokeswoman said although there could be some sunshine around in the eastern parts of England on Sunday morning, it will quickly turn cloudy as rain showers push in from the west.
‘Heavy and thundery’ showers are expected across much of the UK even if there is no weather warning in place, although there should be glimpses of sunshine in between.
Despite the downpours, it will not feel too chilly, with the mercury forecast to hit the high teens in all four UK nations.
Even though summer has felt like a damp squib, blue skies could be on the horizon later this month, forecasters have said.
The dismal summer weather continued on Saturday with parts of London and Glasgow flooded due to heavy rain, with warnings of more downpours, thunderstorms, flooding, lightning strikes, cold winds and hail in central and southern Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland being issued for this weekend.
Videos and photos of heavy flooding on the roads and drains full of water were posted on social media by people in Walthamstow, east London, and Battersea in south London.
LONDON: A taxi splashes through a flooded Farringdon Lane in central London after a day of heavy rain in the capital. Flooded streets in London after heavy rainfall, August 7, 2021. Britain will be hit by more downpours on Sunday with three inches of rain and further thunderstorms expected, the Met Office has warned
The Met Office has issued a yellow thunderstorm warning for Northern Ireland, North Wales, northern England and up into central Scotland for Sunday – with wet weather set to continue into the next week
GLASGOW: Thunderstorms in Glasgow caused flash flooding in Possil Road. It caught out pedestrians, cyclists and drivers, some of whom turned back but most took the chance to drive through (pictured) on August 7, 2021
LEEDS: Revellers wearing ponchos and holding umbrellas brave the rain in Leeds city centre on Saturday night
Pictured: The Met Office has issued yellow thunderstorm warnings across much of Scotland, Northern Ireland and the North of England. There are currently no warnings for next week
Tower Bridge itself was also been filmed filling with water on Saturday morning with more rain predicted throughout the weekend.
Two London Underground stations, Stepney Green and Holborn, closed due to the flooding as well as a platform at Liverpool Street Station.
There was also flooding in Drumchapel, Glasgow, with one video posted on Twitter showing a car abandoned by its owners under a railway bridge.
However, it is likely the weather will clear up for a chance at a drier summer towards the end of August.
Met Office meteorologist Becky Mitchell told the PA news agency: ‘It’s going to stay quite changeable at least for the next week but as we head towards the end of August, there’s a likelihood we’ll see hotter spell of weather and drier more settled weather across the whole of the UK.’
While it is too early to predict temperatures at this stage, it could ‘potentially be in the high 20s’.
Pictured: A group of women in Leeds brave the weather under umbrellas to do the Otley run – a 16-stop pub crawl through the city centre that is known among students and locals alike on Saturday
Pictured: A group of women in fancy dress – and some in ponchos – take part in a pub crawl through Leeds on Saturday
Pictured: A group of people in fancy dress cross a road in a break in the rain in Leeds on Saturday
Pictured: People attend the Classic Car Boot Sale in Granary Square at Kings Cross on August 7, 2021 in London
Pictured: An abandoned car is seen in Glasgow after its driver made an unsuccessful attempt to drive through flood waters on Saturday
Ms Mitchell said that even though it may not seem like it, this summer has been ‘warmer and drier than average’.
She said: ‘It’s not been wetter on average but we’ve seen a lot of reports on the news about the flooding. That’s why it may feel like a bad summer, with not much warmth or sunshine.’
She explained that the only exception has been the south east of England, which has been wetter than usual and has already had 111% of its average rainfall for the summer.
Ms Mitchell added the cause of the torrential rain and thunderstorms is down to the fact that July was so hot.
She said: ‘We’ve had quite a lot of warm weather and there was a heatwave during the middle part of July. The end of that heatwave triggered a lot of thunderstorms and heavy and intense rain, which is what brought some of those flooding incidents across parts of the southeast.
‘There has been a lot of rainfall in a short amount of time, creating localised flooding events rather than it being a wet period.’
A taxi splashes through a flooded Farringdon Lane in central London after a day of heavy rain in the capital. Flooded streets in London after heavy rainfall, August 7, 2021
Videos and photos of heavy flooding on the roads and drains full of water were posted on social media by people in Walthamstow, east London, and Battersea in south London. Pictured: A taxi eases through a flooded road, August 7, 2021
People queue to ride the London Eye in a break of heavy rain in London, August 7, 2021
Hundreds of people stand on the banks of Newcastle Quayside on Saturday waiting in anticipation for a rare opportunity to see one of Newcastle’s famous bridges, the Swing Bridge, swing open during this weekend’s Maritime Festival
Hundreds of people brave the weather and stand on the banks of Newcastle Quayside on Saturday waiting in anticipation for a rare opportunity to see one of Newcastle’s famous bridges, the Swing Bridge, swing open, August 7, 2021
Despite the uncertain weather which bringing frequent showers to the Dorset coast some holiday makers still take to the beach at the holiday resort of West Bay, August 7, 2021
Pictured: People brave the unseasonal and stormy conditions and make the best of the changeable weatheron the beach in Dorset, August 7, 2021
The Met’s Yellow weather warning for Scotland is in place until 11.59pm on Sunday, while a separate warning for northern England, part of north Wales and Northern Ireland expires at 9pm. Pictured: Stormy seas off the coast of Dorset on Saturday
The worst-hit places appear to be the City of London, which has had 143% of its average rainfall this summer, the Isle of Wight with 174% of its average summer rainfall, and Surrey with 126%.
Ms Mitchell believes the Isle of Wight will only get rainier and imagines the percentage will be ‘much higher by the end of summer’.
By comparison, Scotland has only has 38% of its average rainfall and Ms Mitchell said ‘a few northern areas have been much, much drier’.
Going into the new week The Met Office predicts heavy showers in the north on Sunday with sunnier spells in the south.
But the heavy rain will make a comback in many areas on Monday before Tuesday is expected to be mostly dry with some spells of sunshine.
The Sun also reported that some areas could see winds of up to 60mph.
Sunshine and further heavy showers are forecast for Monday but are expected to ease for a drier and brighter Tuesday.
A street in Walthamstow, London, is submerged in water Saturday amid heavy rainfall
Left: A basement in Tower Bridge, London, floods on Saturday for the second time after previously filling with water during heavy rain in late July. Right: Roads in London were already flooding by Saturday morning with more storms and rain predicted throughout the weekend (Pictured: Queenstown Road in Battersea)
On Saturday, revellers braved the damp conditions across the country last night as scores of young Brits headed out on the town.
Groups of men and women donned their best summer attire and fancy dress as they took advantage of a break in the rain in Leeds to take part in the ‘Otley Run’, a mammoth 16-stop pub crawl through the city.
Met Office forecaster Greg Dewhurst said: ‘The reason for this is low pressure is in charge of the UK’s weather at the moment – it’s a very slow-moving area of low pressure, so it’s not going anywhere quickly.
‘It’s leading to bands of heavy showers and thunderstorms which you have seen through the course of Friday, and we have seen flooding in places too.
‘This is going to continue through the weekend, particularly across the northern half of the UK where the showers will be slow-moving compared to southern areas, where it’s a little bit windier.’
While there will be sunny spells among the showers, temperatures are set to be on the cooler side for this time of year, predicted to be in the high teens to low 20s.
Dedicated jogger dons an anorak amid a downpour in Greenwich Park in south London on Saturday
A cyclist in Wood Green, north London, wears a protective purple waterproof cloak while a woman takes shelter under an umbrella on Saturday morning
A woman in Wood Green, London, takes shelter under a newspaper after getting caught in Saturday’s downpour
Tourists take cover under umbrellas while out punting on the River Cam in Cambridge on Saturday
A dog walker jumps over a puddle while dressed in shorts and a polo T-shirt and taking cover under an umbrella on Wimbledon Common, London
A cyclist powers through the downpour on Wimbledon Common, south London, on Saturday
Going into the weekend residents had been warned that there was a small chance their homes and business could be flooded by Friday’s slow-moving, heavy downpours.
The wet and windy weather made an appearance at Sandhurst, Berkshire, Friday as Prime Minister Boris Johnson attended the Sovereign’s Parade at Royal Military Academy on behalf of the Queen.
Guests were seen arriving at Sandhurst shielding themselves from the heavy and blustery downpours with umbrellas while others opted to brave the rain.
The Prime Minister, who was also battered with his fair share of rain, decided to ditch his umbrella as he walked along a row of military personnel in the downpour.
Meanwhile, in Nottingham, spectators sheltered from the rain under large umbrellas during day two of the First LV= Insurance test match between England and India at Trent Bridge.
Others decided to adopt some more unique methods to protect themselves from the showers, with some wearing ponchos and sombreros to match.
The UK recorded its joint fifth warmest July on record this year after a heatwave that saw the first extreme heat warning.
In contrast, the second half of the month saw some areas hit by intense downpours which caused flooding.
Groups of women donned their best dresses and took advantage of a break in the rain in Leeds and elsewhere on Friday night
Three pals are all smiles as they take advantage of a break in the rain in Leeds on Friday night
Friends don their best summer outfits as they make their way through Leeds city centre
Woman offers her friend a drink of water as they make their way to the next bar in Leeds last night
Friends blast music from a laptop using a speaker and have a dance in the street in Leeds city centre
Woman goes barefoot after getting tired of her white heels as her friends give her the thumbs up
Friends rejoice and dance in the street while playing music through a speaker in Leeds on Friday
Group of lads are all smiles as they pose for a snap during a break in the rain in Leeds on Friday
Woman takes a break from partying as she sits on the ground outside a Wetherspoons in Leeds
Two friends in jeans stroll through Leeds on Friday night as they enjoy a pause in the rainfall
Met Office forecaster Nicola Maxey stressed the weather may still be under an ‘Atlantic influence’, with showers in the North and West, adding: ‘We are likely to see potential for thunderstorms through much of this week.’
The average temperature for August is 70.5F (21.4C) in southern England and 66F (19C) in the UK as a whole. Ms Maxey added: ‘There’s little signal we’re going to see any exceptionally hot temperatures.’
Forecasts again say ‘torrential downpours are likely in some places’, while ‘there is a risk of strong winds at times for some’. Miss Maxey said accumulations of rain in areas receiving a couple of thunderstorms could be high.
An improvement in the weather is likely in the second half of next week. Miss Maxey said: ‘From the 10th, 11th up to late August, there’s some indication that we might see more settled weather as an area of high pressure moves in.
‘But we’ll continue that Atlantic influence, so it’s unlikely to be a situation where temperatures build day by day, as happened in July. It could mean dry conditions become more prevalent but with the risk of showers and thunderstorms.
‘Temperatures are due to turn higher than average but there’s little signal we’re going to see any exceptionally hot weather for the second half of the month.’
Miss Maxey said it was too early to give further details about the warm conditions. Temperatures over the coming days are only set to reach highs of 70F (21C) to 72F (22C) in northern and southern areas of England and Wales.
Britons hoping to make the most of their weekend may be met with a washout after the Met Office issued yellow weather warnings for rain and thunderstorms for the north of England (pictured: Manchester) and Scotland
One woman was caught in the middle of torrential rain and a thunderstorm in Manchester city centre on Friday as the weather took a turn for the worse
A cyclist riding during a heavy rain shower on Wimbledon Common in London, as the forecast is for rain and downpours mixed with sunny spells over the weekend
The wet conditions are expected to persist into Saturday with some thunder, all of which the Met Office has advised may cause travel disruption. Pictured: Cars drive through standing water in Gateacre, Liverpool
Eager people enjoyed a Friday night drink in Soho, despite the heavy rainstorms hitting the capital on Friday afternoon
Britain is set to be battered by flash floods, four inches of rain, lightning and 60mph winds as thunderstorms sweep in today and tomorrow. Pictured: Guests shield themselves from the rain as they arrive at the Sovereign’s Parade at Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst
Heavy rain and thunderstorms caused flooding and traffic queues on the M8 near Royston, Glasgow, on Friday
Going into this evening, the showers will die out for many but continue in the north with a risk of persistent rain across parts of north Wales and northwest England. Pictured: People caught in torrential rain in Manchester city centre on Friday
Business owners of Absolute Beauty Salon and Foggy Brew on Berry Street in Belfast clean up after their premises were flooded following torrential rain
Going into the new week The Met Office predicts heavy showers in the north on Sunday with sunnier spells in the south. Pictured: People out for a Friday night drink in Soho amid storms
On Saturday, the thunderstorms will edge west, no longer affecting Nottingham and parts of the north east, including Hull and Lincoln. Pictured: Cars are hit with a heavy rain shower in Wimbledon village
Forecasts again say ‘torrential downpours are likely in some places’, while ‘there is a risk of strong winds at times for some’. Pictured: People caught in torrential rain in Manchester city centre
Some pedestrians caught in the rain showers decided to adopt some more unique methods to protect themselves, with some wearing ponchos and one woman even used what appeared to be a plastic bag (pictured)
Business owners of Absolute Beauty Salon on Berry Street in Belfast clean up after their premises were flooded following torrential rain
The average temperature for August is 70.5F (21.4C) in southern England and 66F (19C) in the UK as a whole. Pictured: People out for a Friday night drink in Soho despite the heavy summer rain storms
Parts of Northern Ireland have started to feel the effects of the stormy weather, with Berry Street in Belfast, beginning to flood – affecting several business. Pictured: Business owners of Foggy Brew on Berry Street in Belfast clean up after flooding
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9872957/Its-not-Britain-hit-downpours-today.html